The Real Deal New York

Bronx’s Via Verde co-ops hit the free market

March 08, 2012 01:00PM

Income-restricted co-op units are now available to the public at Via Verde (Spanish for “the Green Way”), a mixed rental and co-op green building located in the Melrose section of the South Bronx, according to a press release from the building.

The 35 available co-ops at 700-704 Brook Avenue, at East 156th Street, are all 872 square feet with two bedrooms and one bath. They feature Energy Star appliances, balconies and in-unit laundry machines. Their prices are set at $146,000 and sales are being handled in-house.

The building has 222 units total: 151 are rentals (with monthly rents ranging from $800 to $1,200 and 71 are co-ops, 33 of which are designated for affordable housing. The units range from 800-square-foot one-bedrooms to 1,500-square-foot three-bedrooms, spanning from $135,000 to $193,000 in price. Income restrictions vary from $54,000 to $145,000. The affordable housing co-ops were sold through a lottery in November, while the rental unit lottery was in December.

Designed by Dattner Architects and Grimshaw Architects, and developed by Phipps Houses and Jonathan Rose Companies, the building, which commenced construction in 2010, is set to be completed by the end of the month. Occupancy is slated to begin next month.

Gold LEED-certified, Via Verde has seven tiers of green space on terraces, which include tree orchards and gardening beds. The building houses a fitness center on the second floor. Montefiore Medical Center will operate a 5,500-square-foot family wellness center on the ground floor with another 2,000 square feet on the ground floor available for a retailer. — Zachary Kussin